Aboriginal art originated around 40,000-50,000 years ago when Aboriginal people first settled in Australia. They told stories through paintings using natural pigments, often on bark canvases. Common symbols in Aboriginal art represent animals, plants, people and Dreamtime stories. Dot painting involves applying colored dots in patterns using fingers, sticks or brushes. The dots make designs that reflect Aboriginal culture, rituals, and connection to the land. Aboriginal art is deeply meaningful and an important part of Australia's cultural heritage.

1. Aboriginal Art
A Journey Down Under

2. Aims of today’s Lesson
Today we are going to
• discover a little bit about Australia and the
Aboriginal People
• learn about aboriginal culture and art
• study the symbols used in aboriginal art
• Look at colour and understand how different
colours may have different meanings

3. Famous images of Australia
Sydney Opera House Uluru Bush Fires
Australian Flag
Outback
Bondi Beach

4. Animals

5. AUSTRALIAN ABORIGINAL FLAG Aboriginal culture settled in Australia
around 40 - 50,000 years ago. After settling
FORM & SYMBOLISM in Australia they told stories about visions
The top half is black and the lower half and rituals by painting with pigment found
red. There is a yellow disk in the centre naturally in the outback. One method they
of the flag. used for painting is bark painting. The
process involved cutting bark from trees
Black - represents the Aboriginal
people of Australia. during the wet season and placing it in a fire
to cure. When the bark was taken out of the
Red - represents the red earth, the red fire it was flattened with stones or logs.
ochre used in ceremonies and This was then used as the painting canvas.
Aboriginal people’s spiritual relation to Finally they would apply paint or pigment
the land. using a technique called ‘dotting’. Brushes,
sticks and fingers were used to create
Yellow disk - represents the Sun, the designs that reflected dreams, rituals and a
giver of life and protector. rich cultural history. Some researchers say
that most of the paintings had some sort of
mythological undertone.

6. Aboriginal People
Aboriginal Facts.
• Aboriginal people told stories about
their life and history in their
paintings.
• They would dot their paintings using
brushes, sticks and fingers.
• They tell stories in words and
pictures.
• The stories are called ‘Dreamtime
stories.’
• Aboriginal art uses Earth colours
(colours of the desert) such as
browns, reds
• Symbols are used to tell stories
• Paintings can be entirely made from
small dots of paint
• The dots make patterns or symbols

7. Aboriginal People.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yj0iJll-Hug&feature=related
www.youtube.com/watch?v=QSXjpWUDvO4&feature=fvw

8. Aboriginal Art
Aboriginal Colours
Black
Black stands for the colour of
the Aborigine people and
night.
Yellow
Yellow is the sacred colour.
The colour of the sun.
Red
Is for the colour of the land and
for blood. ‘We are all of one
blood, from the land we come
and to it we will all return.’
White
White is the spirit colour, like
smoke, wind and lightning.

9. Aboriginal Symbols
Meeting Child Coolamon Dingo
Emu Campfire Woman Yundee
Kangaroo Bushbannana Fire sticks
Man
Witchetty grubs Goanna

10. Aboriginal Symbols

11. Aboriginal Artists
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PC8z8rAYLHw&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CKqA3RteH1A

12. Examples of Artwork

17. An overhanging rock where, typically, a
lot of aboriginal paintings can be found.

18. Why do you think this style of painting is called
x-ray art?

20. Hand prints

21. Digital Aboriginal Art

22. Boomerangs

23. By the end of this Project……
• We will have a better
understanding of Aboriginal Art
• Have learnt about the symbols
used in Aboriginal Art
• We would have experimented
with paint and used dot art like
the Aboriginal Artist – maybe
using tools like sticks and pen lids
• Will have discovered Aboriginal
Dreamtime Stories
http://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=itszep0duwI
• And we will have all made our
own Aboriginal Painting!
• We should have had lots of fun!

24. Aboriginal Art
By Sebastian Iglesias (Australian LA). J
anuary
2013